(The Center Square) – As the election season heats up, three frontrunners are pulling ahead in the race for Michigan’s governor’s mansion.
With over a dozen candidates running, Democrat Jocelyn Benson, Republican John James, and Independent Mike Duggan lead the pack. While Duggan has led on campaign spending so far, James has been consistently leading in polling.
Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is currently term-locked. A Republican has not won the seat since 2014. It will be a critical race for the swing state as one of five governorships Democrats are defending in states President Donald Trump, a Republican, won in 2024.
On the Democrat side of the aisle, Benson has served as the state’s secretary of state since her election in 2018. Before that, she worked as an attorney and as dean of Wayne State University Law School.
In her role as Michigan’s chief elections official, Benson has been vocal in her opposition to the Trump administration.
Over the past year, she has received significant backlash from state Republicans, which has included everything from calls for impeachment to official letters calling for her to address their “election integrity concerns.”
Benson is running on a platform that prioritizes affordability, housing, healthcare, childcare, and energy costs. She has been endorsed by many members of the state Democrat party establishment, as well as many unions, pro-abortion group Emily’s List, and the Michigan Association for Justice.
She will face off on the Democrat ticket in the Aug. 4 primary against Kevin Hogan, Marni Sawicki and Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson.
On the Republican side of the aisle, U.S. Rep. John James is firmly holding the lead in recent polling. The most-recent poll, which was released in December, showed James leading the other Republican candidates with 48% of the vote.
James was first elected to the U.S. House in 2022, after two failed campaigns for U.S. Senate in 2018 and 2020 and a failed campaign for governor in 2022.
A veteran and businessman, James is running on a “Freedom Agenda.” His platform prioritizes ethics reform and transparency, ending fraud and waste, and passing a parents’ bill of rights. James will face off on the Republican ticket in the Aug. 4 primary against former state Attorney General Mike Cox, Joyce Gipson, Anthony Hudson, former speaker of the state House Tom Leonard, state Sen. Aric Nesbitt, Ralph Rebandt, Evan Space, and Karla Wagner.
Though leading the polls, Trump allies recently made the news for saying the president would like James to abandon his bid for Michigan’s governorship and instead seek reelection to U.S. Congress.
Independent candidate Mike Duggan, who recently left the Democrat Party, has received strong support since announcing his bid. A former mayor of Detroit, Duggan is running on a platform prioritizing affordability, rebuilding the state’s economy, and unity. He would be the first Independent candidate to ever win Michigan’s governorship.
Each of the three major candidates have significant cash-on-hand as well, though Benson has far more than James or Duggan. This is according to the most-recent financial statements released earlier this month.
In total cash-on-hand, James reported $2.5 million, Duggan $2.7 million, and Benson $3.6 million. So far, Duggan has spent the most on the race, coming in at $2.4 million. All three have brought in about $5 million in contributions to their campaigns.
Despite spending the least so far, James has been leading in recent polling. The last poll, which was released in mid-January, reported James with 34%, Benson with 32%, and Duggan with 26%.
The primary is in 175 days, while Election Day is 266 days away.
